Lawyer and journalist Katie Phang unloaded on billionaire Leon Black after the Jeffrey Epstein associate sued Congress rather than testify.
On Thursday, Black filed a 28-page complaint in federal court in Washington just hours before he was due back before the House Oversight Committee for a "continuation of his questioning," Phang explained.
In a Thursday episode of her podcast, Phang said the "billionaire buddy of Jeffrey Epstein" was supposed to "roll up today" and instead ran to court to block two subpoenas that House Oversight Chair James Comer served on him in June.
Those subpoenas followed Black's June appearance, when Phang said he "walked out maybe an hour into his voluntary transcribed interview" after "stonewalling and refusing to answer questions" about non-disclosure agreements.
Phang argued that Black's no-show was damaging no matter how the legal fight shakes out.
"The failure for Leon Black to appear today is a huge problem for him," Phang said. "Putting aside the legalities of it, the optics are horrific."
She added that Black "just furthers the public's belief that he is trying to hide from the people his involvement with not only Jeffrey Epstein, Ghislaine Maxwell, but also others."
In the lawsuit Black filed against Congress, he asked the court to declare the subpoenas invalid, according to Phang. Black argued they "exceed House oversight's delegated authority" and seek "private information that bears no legitimate connection to its legislative purpose," Phang explained.
"Congress pursuing Mr. Black for purely political gain is not a legitimate end of congressional investigations," his complaint argued, according to Phang. Rep. Robert Garcia, the lead Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, called for immediate consequences, she noted.
"By refusing to testify today, Leon Black is now defying two congressional subpoenas," Garcia said, per Phang. "Black gave Jeffrey Epstein over $180 million over six years. He funded Epstein's abuse and trafficking of women."
Phang, who's suing Attorney General Todd Blanche for the release of more unredacted Epstein files, made it clear where she landed on Black's court gambit.
"It's nice, huh? To have money and to have high-powered, expensive lawyers to run to federal court to be able to do this for you," Phang said. "Must be nice, huh?"
She demanded, "Stop the insanity, Leon Black."